1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an outboard motor having a speed change device that changes the rotational speed of an engine and transmits power to a propeller.
2. Description of the Related Art
An outboard motor having a speed change device that changes the rotational speed of an engine and transmits power to a propeller is known. For example, WO 2007/007707 discloses an outboard motor that has a planetary gear speed change mechanism that changes the rotational speed of an engine between a high speed range and a low speed range and a forward-and-reverse change mechanism that changes the rotational direction of the engine among forward, neutral, and reverse.
In such a speed change device, adding a speed reduction mechanism to an output side of the speed change device has been considered to stabilize and transmit engine power to a propeller.
However, simply adding the speed reduction mechanism to the conventional speed change device makes the dimension of the speed change device in an axial direction larger, and accordingly, the increased size of the entire outboard motor becomes a problem.